Efficiency Is Key Ingredient In Recipe For Compact Kitchen

Rental living - Small spaces

November 14, 1998|By Christine Brun

``Never eat more than you can lift,'' the inimitable Miss Piggy advises. Add to that: Plan your compact kitchen design with emphasis on easy access to the items most often lifted during meal preparation.

The kitchen is the heart of every home - be it a tiny apartment, a condo or a bungalow - and is the most heavily used space in the home. Given that you most likely have limited cupboard storage, examine the options.

According to the National Kitchen and Bath Association, today's cook no longer has the time or desire to hunt through a labyrinth of cabinets. Everything from dishware to dry goods must be within easy sight and reach.

The association suggests installing point-of-use storage that keeps the most often used kitchen wares in the spot they're most needed - pots and pans near the cooktop or range, everyday dish and glassware near the dishwasher or table.

This might include a built-in cupboard below the eating bar for dishes. Maybe it becomes a deep drawer with full extension glides for easy access. Also, use cabinet storage subdivided with shelves, roll-outs, drawer and tray dividers, knife and spice racks, etc., for maximum ease and efficiency.

Where space is limited, store only everyday items close at hand. Discipline yourself to reserve seldom-used items such as an ice cream maker, huge soup pot or serving platter in the hall closet or linen closet.

Interior designer Peni Wilson of the San Diego design firm A Designer's Influence, offers a simple solution in a rented loft kitchen. Using easily available wall brackets and plastic laminate shelves, quick access to cooking condiments, spices and utensils is provided.

This particular galley kitchen is situated between the living room and the bedroom. There are about 12 lineal feet of counter top, but the high ceilings make it possible to use taller-than-average upper cabinets.

The open shelves are mounted to the walls on both sides of the kitchen, including over the sink. Everyday dishware is simply stacked within arm's reach of the sink and dishwasher. Martini and wine glasses are placed on the highest shelf, with the idea in mind that more people eat breakfast cereal than drink martinis. But this flexibility makes the choice of what to store in the open up to the user.

In 1869, Catherine Beecher and Harriet Beecher Stowe published an ideal kitchen work area that provided space for all the staple foodstuffs and working surfaces a cook of that era would need. There were open upper shelves and lower compartments for flour, rye, cornmeal and sugar.

Lard was kept in a container on a shelf and tools left hanging right above the counter surface. Everything was close at hand, and although the design occurred nearly 130 years ago, the concept of open shelves providing ready access is still valid.

Clear glass or plastic containers with airtight lids can be arranged attractively to hold staples of a contemporary household - flour, granola, nuts, oats, rice and pastas. Open baskets or bins can store garlic, potatoes and onions, or ripening fruit.

Cooking at home is a budgetary and health necessity in some households or a relaxing, creative endeavor in others. Keep the kitchen efficient, and in both cases the task remains stress-free, regardless of the complexity of the meal.

Confined space demands careful analysis of what you store and where you keep it. Banish little-used equipment and make creative space for necessities. Then you can cook and eat to your heart's content.